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Fishing arts

international leg

Fishing in the Miño River is an activity of great importance, both economically and socially. There are many fishing gears used, but the following stand out:
 

  • In the fisheries. arts ofcabaceiray botirão​​

 

  • In the Tea River, the tradition of lemprea fishing with "fisga" is maintained, in las lurches

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  • In the estuary:

    • Cloth: for eel fishing

    • Tresmallo: Red of three cloths for fishing lamprey, tarpon, salmon, sea bass and saboga.

    • Aljerife: Abandoned. Cultural and historical value

Fishing

The "pesqueiras" or "pescos" are lithic architectural structures, located on the margin and inside the river and used for artisanal fishing. Although some are "natural" with almost no human intervention, many are built with large granite blocks to withstand the onslaught of the river and the materials it transports, adapting to the topography and its characteristics. The first reliable documentation about these constructions appears in the Middle Ages, although it is believed that they date back to the times of the ancient Roman Empire. 

 

The property of the pesqueiras is hereditary, and may be owned by a person, a family or groups. Rights can be sold, bought, donated, inherited or assigned. In the international Miño, about 700 of these structures were inventoried at the beginning of the 20th century, and today about 200 are active.

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To be able to use them in the exercise of fishing, it will be necessary that their maintenance, shape, dimensions and property meet the conditions provided for in the Border Surrender Act, signed in Lisbon on May 30, 1897.

There are several types of pesqueiras but they can be grouped into two types:

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Type I: Cabaceira

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This type is characterized by asingle body, rectangular, elongated, which goes into the river and where the "cabaceira" network is used. Normally located in the upper areas of the river. They are limited to a small addition in extension due to the placement of rocks and may end in a staircase. They start from a rocky margin and advance perpendicularly or obliquely towards the middle of the river. Some of these pesqueiras had openings in the body in order to relieve the water pressure.​(Schematics: A. Leite, 1999)

The head net

 

It is an art of fishing with a trap and without a frame. It consists of a net with a mesh of 60-80 mm on the diagonal, 7 meters long and 4 meters high, although its dimensions are highly variable, depending on the current and position of the fishery. . It is mounted at the end of the pesqueira, called "strut". This net, when it is working, is made up of a section fixed to the "pesqueira" (the "cloth"), rectangular in shape, which forces the fish to move to themobile part in a frusto-conical shape, called "tail", which has a "mouth" through which the fish enters.As it goes it passes through a small opening, the "fuzz" and then remains trapped in the "falsette bag". -5cde-3194-bb3b-136bad5cf58d_The mesh of the net for lamprey fishing must be between 55 and 80 mm diagonally. For the other species, the mesh cannot be less than 120 mm diagonally. 

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It is used, together with the bituroon, for lamprey fishing in the "pesqueiras" upstream of the  Torre de Lapela, from February to May. It is also used to catch salmon, tarpon and sea bass, from April to May.

Type II: Bituron

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This typology is made up of several bodies (from 2 to 5), called "poios" or "pescos", arranged parallel to the river, separated about 1 meter and advancing obliquely to the middle of the river in the direction of the current. The plant is rectilinear although it can be curved. Each body is, on average, 4-5 meters long, 2-3 meters wide and 4-6 meters high. The average total length is 23 meters. The bodies have a rectangular or rhomboid base and they form channels ("caneiros") through which the water circulates. At the end of the pesqueira it can be found el "rabo" (subtype I), whose objective was to divert the current towards the "poios" and whose dimensions are variable, with the possibility of conjunction between the pesqueiras on both banks (subtype IIa), some with a double body (subtype IIb), even the union of the bodies of both margins (subtype III). (Schemes: A. Leite, 1999)

the bituron

This art of fishing consists of a bag of net conical in shape like a funnel, approximately 2 meters long. It is made up of two nets: the first net, with a wide mesh, is surrounded by iron rings (formerly made of laurel wood bent in the fire), the first of them, the "mouth", is U-shaped and is the largest, followed by three successively smaller ones ("arco da sarnelha", "arco do meio" and "arco rabicheiro"), which divide the net into four sections with increasingly smaller diameters until ending in a point ("hook"). The inner net, also conical and with a narrower mesh, is part attached to the mouth arch and ends up attached to the "hook" by ropes and its function is to prevent the fish from leaving. The meshes of the net for lamprey fishing should be between 55 and 80 mm on the diagonal. For other species, the mesh cannot be less than 120 mm diagonally. This rigging is fixed to the bottom, at the mouth of the "pesqueira", and tightened with a chain at the top . (Scheme: Pacheco, MF, 2013). 

It is used for lamprey fishing in the "pesqueiras" upstream of la Torre de Lapela (from February to May). It is also used to catch salmon , sábalo and reo, from April to May.

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Sources: 

Pesqueiras
Cabaceira
Butrón

rapette and cloth

In elver fishing, until the 1970s it was done exclusively with unganapán (paneira or rapeta), mainly from the river bank, now prohibited except for boats with a license for glass eel fishing. It is a metal ring of variable diameter that can go up to 1 meter, attached to the end of a stick, with a mesh of between 1-2 mm.

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in the 1970sNacio a net to capture glass eels: the cloth. It consists of a network in the form of a truncated cone. The mesh may not be less than 2 mm on each side and its dimensions may not exceed:

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  • Lead rope: 15 m.

  • Buoy rope: 10 m.

  • Height: 8m.

  • Mouth: 2.5m.

  • Length: 10m.

 

It is used anchored at the ends of the lead rope as an auxiliary for the peneira or rapette.

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Sources: 

Tela

Lurches

It is a fishing gear dedicated exclusively to lamprey fishing. It consists of a platform or walkway arranged over the river and that reaches only to the middle of the riverbed, with one end resting on the riverbank and the rest on stilts or wooden or iron posts so as not to impede the free movement of water. waters. They have two lines of lights in parallel that allow the fisherman to see it and capture it with the help of the "fisga" ("francada" or "trident"), consisting of a long stick with spikes at its end.

 

Your property is subject to a special regime by annual draw carried out by the Xunta de Galicia. There are no fishing rights contracted by inheritance, nor are they bought or sold. There are approximately 50 distributed in the Tea river, in asection of approximately 12.5 km, between the municipalities of Ponteareas and Salvaterra.

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The working period of fishing is from February to May (for the year 2020). Fishing takes place on alternate days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday from the odd batches and on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from the even ones. Once the fishing period is over, the fishermen have to_cc781905-5cde -3194-bb3b-136bad5cf58d_remove the stakes and other facilities.

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Sourcee: 

Estacada rio Tea
Estacada

Trammel and lamprey

They are drift nets made up of three fabrics or cloths. The two exterior ones, called "alvitanas", are identical and with a 300 mm mesh. The inner fabric, "tampo", has a smaller mesh. The fish, encountering this net, easily cross one of the "alvitanas" and push the "tampo" through the meshes of the second "alvitana", thus being imprisoned in a kind of sack or bag.

 

In the case of trammel netting, this inner fabric cannot be less than 140 mm diagonal and its dimensions cannot exceed 120 meters in length and 60 meshes in height. It is used in the fishing for salmon, reo, tarpon and saboga, from March  June.

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In the case of the lampreera, the inner fabric must be between 70 mm and 90 mm diagonal  and its dimensions may not exceed 120 meters long and 70 meshes height. It is used to capture lampreys, from January to April.

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Sources: 

Tresmallo

Aljerife

It is an art of trawling with a net of a single cloth, about 150 meters long and 120 meshes high. The mesh can not be less than 59 mm. It was formerly used in the estuary during the day, but was discontinued when the amount of tarpon decreased sharply in the decades of 1960-1970.

 

The origin of the word "aljerife" perhaps comes from Hispanic Arabical-jarif eitheraljarifa, which means "the sweeper, the one who rakes".

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Photos: Eliseo Alonso, Carlos Antunes, courtesy of Luís Fraga

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Sources: 

Aljerife

other arts

  • Solleira or Picaira:  single cloth net; the wet mesh of this net may not have less than 70 mm diagonal and its dimensions may not exceed 55 m long and 70 mesh high. It is used fixed, anchored at its ends, "chopping" the bottom in front of it, for plaice fishing.

  • Varga of Múgil: network of three panels; the wet mesh of this net may not have less than 80 mm diagonal and its dimensions may not exceed 100 m long and 60 mesh high. It is used drifting for mullet and other white fish.

  • Mugileira: single cloth net; the wet mesh of this net may not have less than 70 mm diagonal and its dimensions may not exceed 110 m long and 80 mesh high. It is used drifting for mullet and other white fish.

  • Long lines and lines: these are sleepers that consist of a main line, weighted with weights, from which nylon branches with hooks at their ends. The opening of the hooks may not be less than 6 mm. They are used fixed, anchored at both ends, in those places where there were no nets thrown, for fishing mainly bass and sea bream.

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Sources: 

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